As many green building and conservation professionals agree that ‘the greenest building is the one already standing’, it was a logical choice for these environmentally minded soon-to-be grandparents to convert their old horse barn into a secondary residence for their expecting daughter and son-in-law to move back to Vancouver Island and live on their property.

Inspired by Passive House, the barn is retrofitted with with super insulated walls, triple pane windows, highly efficient HRV (heat recovery ventilation) and a wood stove to be resilient in extended power outages (these are still common on some parts of the Island).

The robust character of the handcrafted, open post and beam roof structure inspired to create a design that mixes new york loft with rustic west coast style.

‘The numbers don’t lie. To keep global warming at tolerable levels, the building industry has to change—radically and rapidly. That’s the message of a new report from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

The Global Status Report 2017 sounds a red alert: “near-zero-energy, zero-emissions buildings need to become the construction standard globally within the next decade” to ensure average temperatures rise no more than 2°C. Energy retrofits also need to become much more common.

The building sector is responsible for 39% of global carbon emissions, according to the report. That includes embodied carbon of building materials, and it makes the building sector the single largest contributor to global warming.’

The Niagara Market building in Victoria, BC has been amazingly transformed!

When Seamus McKeating & Jennifer Gunter bought the building a little over a year ago it needed an overhaul. We tossed around ideas on how to refresh the building within the existing spaces, while keeping the community spirit that this market has been bringing to the James Bay area in Victoria for over a century.

One of the challenges included making an access to the apartments upstairs that didn’t infringe on the store space. A deck on the 2nd floor with access through the private yard was created. This then created a fantastic space for a patio on the side of the building, which is quickly becoming a social hub for the neighbourhood.

This heritage project has been taken to a new level with the talented new owners, which you can read about in this nice piece the Times Colonist printed recently. Read it here.

Check out Niagara Market’s Instagram Feed for more photo’s of this happening place.

Below is a photo timeline of the Niagara Market project:

Niagara Store building before renovation.

Entry to apartment #2, before.

Entry to apartment #1, before.

The store was a community gathering place.

The exterior after renovations (and a fresh coat of paint).

The outdoor patio is a nice place to hang out and meet your neighbours.

Pop-up market on the patio.

Patio furniture from up-cycled pallets.

This old typewriter was found in the building and lives a second life passing on secret messages.

The new stairs up, from the private yard onto the deck.

Interior of Apartment #2 with 2 sliding door to the new sun deck.

The new deck , with sliding doors of apartment #2.

The new deck , with entry doors to apartment #1 at the end and #2 in the middle.

Entry of apartment #1.

‘Door world’ is where all the salvaged doors find a (temporary) home, if not repurposed into the apartments or the new market.

Here’s a project I’ve been working on lately; a small, efficient house in Nelson, BC, designed for a young family with an active outdoor lifestyle.

The 30′ narrow lot poses some challenges, but it’s going to be an efficient unit.

The house features a 1722 SF 3 bedroom unit and a basement suite.

The layout of the open concept living-dining-kitchen on the main features a fireplace and a kitchen in the centre bay, accommodating a view from the living room of Kootenay Lake’s west arm towards the north, while maximizing southern exposure and solar gain through the patio doors off the dining room.

A large mudroom combined with laundry, a deck with pergola large enough for a dining set and barbeque, dedicated bike storage below the deck, a hot tub in the back yard, and low maintenance sustainable materials will make make this house a haven of easy living for an young family with an active outdoor lifestyle.

The 2 bedroom basement suite has it’s own dedicated outdoor space in the form of a sunken patio.

Due to the small lot size and the large program the lot is being rezoned so we can have a slightly larger lot coverage, smaller setback on one side and a few extra feet in height.

Recently I had the pleasure to see Bjørn Kierulf of Createrra Architects in Slovakia, give a presentation at BUILDEX Vancouver, about Passive Houses built with natural materials.

Natural Passive HouseDriven by the desire to build Passive Houses as natural as possible, Bjørn Kierulf is building certified Passive Houses with straw panels, wood, cellulose insulation and clay plaster.

Non-ToxicThe main reason for wanting to use as many natural materials as possible, is because these would be non-toxic, and in todays building world toxicity is rampant.

Bjørn pointed out that in 1900 only 50 building materials were available on the market, while today there are more than 50,000 building materials, of which only 43% are tested for toxicity(!).

Clay PlasterAs well, he reasoned that clay plaster is a superior finishing product as it:1. requires no chemical bonding,2. controls humidity by its ability to absorb @>50% and desorb @<50%3. and it’s creative!

It is my pleasure to announce that I received certification as Passive House Designer today!

To receive this Certification I had to pass a stringent test set out by the International Passive House Institute in Germany, covering all aspects of Passive House Design and Construction, including mechanical installations and financing.

Recently I designed this Gym for a couple of professional athletes that had moved from Calgary, where they lived around the corner of one the biggest work-out centres in North America, to Kaslo (pop. 1000) with only one small fitness centre – and it’s ladies only!
Every 2 years they compete in polynesian rowing races for which he needs to upkeep their strength and stamina, so it is important to them to have access to exercise equipment on a daily basis.

How would you like to work out in this gym?
The PV panels generate electricity while you get buff!

Kaslo Passive House construction has reached lock-up – the house in enclosed. The walls are up, the roof is on and the doors and windows are installed. The house is weather tight – Let winter come!

South facade with lots of windows.

South-west view with the covered entrance to the basement on the left. South-east view. The air-lock entry, on the right, is outside the heated envelope. North-east view. Note the angle between the main house and the entry. The main house is facing due south, while the entries and trellis align with the street grid. North facade. Note the few small windows.Kaslo Passive House wrapped up.